This relates generally to printed circuit structures and, more particularly, to flexible printed circuit structures.
Electronic devices such as computers, cellular telephones, and other equipment contain electrical components. Electrical components may be mounted on printed circuits. Printed circuits may also be used to form structures such as antennas, transmission lines, and signal buses.
Some printed circuits are formed using flexible substrate materials. For example, flexible printed circuits may be formed using sheets of a flexible polymer such as polyimide. Layers of patterned metal traces may be formed on the flexible polyimide substrate material.
In some devices, flexible printed circuits are mounted in a planar configuration. In other devices, flexible printed circuits are bent. For example, a flexible printed circuit antenna or flexible printed circuit signal bus may be bent. It may be desirable to form a bend in a flexible printed circuit to allow the flexible printed circuit to be incorporated within the potentially tight confines of an electronic device housing or to better utilize available volume within the device housing.
It can be challenging to form bends in flexible printed circuits, particularly when the flexible printed circuits include relatively thick substrate material.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved flexible printed circuit structures.